Cars Destined To Become Collectibles: Porsche 928

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The car that was supposed to replace the 911 will make a comeback as a collectible.

The Porsche 928 was a GT car that was produced from 1978 to 1995 (a pretty long life). The 928 was actually built as a replacement for the 911, but we all know how that worked out. It originally came with a 4.5-liter V8 with 219 horsepower (in North America) and 237 horsepower elsewhere. Porsche used a transaxle setup to give the 928 a perfect 50/50 weight distribution. A five-speed dog-leg manual and three-speed (later four-speed) auto were on offer. More than 80% of 928s shipped with the automatic, making the manual extremely rare.

The 928 was such a good car that it won European Car of the Year in 1978, beating out the BMW 7 Series and Ford Granada. The Porsche was extremely well engineered, although insane maintenance costs have caused the value of these cars to plummet through the years. Enthusiasts like Matt Farah still have a blast driving one, though.

After driving the car, Farah is convinced that more people need to be buying these things as collectibles, and we agree. The 928 is extremely unique even among Porsches, and special models like the S4 and GTS variants make them extremely valuable. Towards the end of the 928's life, the V8's displacement was increased to 5.4-liters to produce 345 horsepower. In the US, the GTS trim is extremely rare with only 77 examples being shipped into the country. If you can find a 928 with a manual transmission, you should buy it. This is a Porsche that many people believed would never be collectible. You may have to dish out a small fortune to maintain it, but the 928 will reward you as it appreciates in value.

Because the 928 lived for so long, performance figures vary greatly from early to late model year cars. Early 928s could hit 60 mph in around 6.5 seconds (more for an automatic), and complete the quarter mile in around 15 seconds. By the time the 928 S4 was launched in 1987, the 0 to 60 time was down to 5.4 seconds with a quarter-mile time of 13.7 seconds. That is quick even by today's standards. Although early models may not be as fast, they are becoming exceedingly difficult to find. A simple search on car.com does not yield any cars from the 1970s. These models, in addition to the more powerful GTS and S4 models, will be quite expensive. You can pick up a "cheap" 928 for around less than $10,000.

We don't recommend doing this, however. You will likely be stuck with a beat up old German car that will never run. Nicer examples can be found in the $20,000 to $30,000 range. If you can find one with a manual in good condition you should jump on it. The S4 can range from the low $20,000s (with the auto) to the mid $40,000s with a manual. It seems that we are too late in recommending the GTS, as prices have already soared to around $70,000 even for automatics. If you can find a 928 GTS with a manual for anywhere near $70,000 you will have found hidden treasure. It is hard to believe that the 928 is starting to climb. No one seemed to think that this Porsche was anything more than a failed 911 replacement.

Even if the market doesn't go ballistic like the market for old 911s, the 928 will reward you in other ways. This clip from BBC's Top Gear will have you bawling your eyes out as Jeremy Clarkson tells you why the 928 is so special to him.